Mobile consumer electronic device shipments to grow 55-fold in six years

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New York City Shipments of mobile broadband-enabled consumer electronics are forecast to increase 55-fold between 2008 and 2014.

“While demand for products in the other categories is just starting to ramp up, consumers are already snapping up connected PNDs and eBook readers in numbers, and will continue to do so,” said ABI Research senior analyst Jeff Orr.

Some of these devices have featured Wi-Fi for some time. However, when a cellular or mobile broadband modem is embedded in a device, it becomes tied to a particular operator’s service billing, Orr said.

“That changes the device vendors’ business model dramatically,” Orr said, adding that the various possible business models for delivering content and interactivity to these devices may hinge on a make-or-break factor that is the cost of a data plan.